Interfor to exit Quebec operations, sell sawmills, manufacturing plant for C$30M

INTERFOR CORPORATION plans to exit its operations in Quebec, Canada, including the sale of its three manufacturing facilities and the closure of its Montreal corporate office. This strategic initiative will support a focus on the areas of highest future potential across the remainder of the Company. As part of the exit plan, Interfor announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its sawmills in Val-d’Or and Matagami as well as its Sullivan remanufacturing plant in Val-d’Or, along with all associated forestry and business operations, to Chantiers Chibougamau Ltee. The purchase price is estimated to be approximately C$30 million in cash, based on the value of specific working capital items at June 30, 2024, which will be subject to normal course adjustments at closing, plus the assumption of certain liabilities by CCL. Additionally, Interfor and CCL will enter into a multi-year contract for the supply of Machine Stress Rated lumber to Interfor’s I-Joist engineered wood products facility in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The sale does not include any countervailing or anti-dumping duty deposits related to the ongoing US/Canada softwood lumber trade dispute. All historical CV & AD deposits up to the date of closing will be retained by Interfor. Total CV & AD deposits related to the facilities up to June 30, 2024 totalled approximately $56 million, excluding any interest. As part of the exit plan, Interfor also announced that it intends to permanently close its corporate office in Montreal in the coming months, allowing for the full realization of synergies associated with the Company’s EACOM Timber Corporation acquisition announced in November 2021. Interfor will continue to own and operate its five sawmills and one I-Joist EWP facility in Ontario and its two sawmills and woodlands management business in New Brunswick. The Val-d’Or and Matagami sawmills have a combined two-shift rated lumber production capacity of 255 million board feet per year, representing approximately 5% of Interfor’s total company-wide capacity. However, the mills only produced 206 million board feet of lumber in the trailing twelve months ended June 30, 2024, representing a utilization rate of approximately 80%. Since early August 2024, the mills have been operating at a utilization rate of approximately 50%. The completion of the transaction is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024. Interfor anticipates taking an impairment charge in the third quarter of 2024 associated with the announcement.